A Popcorn Lesson

T

he opening and closing of cabinet doors in the kitchen told everyone in the house that mom was up to something.  I can still hear the sounds of her rummaging in the lower cabinets as she looked for the old faithful piece of equipment that always brought a smile to everyone’s face.  The closing of the cabinet doors, the sound of something being placed on the counter top, the opening and shutting of the pantry door, and the sound of hard kernels being poured into a metal pot soon confirmed what we already knew.  Mom was making popcorn, again!

For my mom and dad, popcorn is almost a religious experience.  They love it and I can hardly recall an evening in front of the television when popcorn wasn’t’ served.  Now I’m sure I’m over exaggerating and I know my mom will let me know I’m stretching the truth about the frequency of our eating popcorn, but the fact remains we love the stuff.  I remember watching her as she placed the corn into the old popper we had for years.  A little bit of corn, a little oil, a dash of salt, and about 15 minutes were all that was required to make a huge bowl of popcorn, and my mom had it down to a science!

There was one other element needed to make that popcorn, however.  All the effort in placing the ingredients into the popper would have been worthless had she not plugged the unit in and turned it on.  This supplied the heat necessary to make the corn cook, sizzle, and eventually pop.  I loved to hear the corn as it exploded, banging against the sides and the lid of the popper.  It started off slow but toward the end the sound was almost deafening as the kernels in the popper changed from something small and hard into something hot, salty, and yummy!

But no matter how many bowls we popped, one thing was certain.  Not all of the kernels would turn out as white fluffy pieces of popcorn.  Invariably there would be kernels that just didn’t make it.  They were unchanged by the heat of the popper, remaining in their shells, refusing to change and falling short of their potential.  Although they all looked the same in the jar, in the heat of the popper, it was a completely different story.  When put to the test, some of them just didn’t make the grade.

Has it ever occurred to you that our walk with the Lord is very much like being inside a popcorn popper?  Only when the kernels are placed into hot oil are they really challenged to change from what they are into what they were meant to be.  It is only in the heat that the real interior of the popcorn kernel is revealed.  Without the high temperature and boiling oil, the kernels remain just that—kernels—filled with wonderful flavor but never releasing it.

The story of Abraham’s walk to Mount Moriah to sacrifice his son, Isaac, gives us a bird’s eye view of what it is like to be a kernel in God’s popcorn popper.  After promising to give Abraham a son, God requires this father to travel for three days toward a mountain that He will show Abraham.  For the entire journey, the Scriptures do not reveal any conversation between Abraham and God but it is a certainty that the heat and pressure on Abraham grew ever more intense with each step he took.

Genesis 22:6 paints this vivid portrait of Abraham during this time of testing, “Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together…”  Can’t you feel the heat as it builds up in this man’s heart?  He places the wood on Isaac, (the corn goes into the popper) he takes the fire and the knife (the heat is applied), and they begin walking toward the mountain (the heat builds, the kernels sizzle, and Abraham is ready to explode)!!  There is no place to turn, no where to run, and no chance of getting out of this test.  The only thing Abraham knows is that God will fulfill His promise of providing him with descendants through this boy.

And God never disappoints.  Abraham places Isaac on the altar and raises the knife to perform the sacrificial act.  At that moment God stops Abraham, telling him not to harm the boy.  Now God knows that Abraham loves Him because he has not refused to sacrifice his only son.  In the heat of the moment Abraham’s character was revealed.  Here was a man who loved and trusted God above all else.  In the hottest part of the test, with his heart breaking and his mind swirling, Abraham held to God’s promise.  He trusted the Lord even when it looked as if all hope was gone.  The whiteness of Abraham’s faith was revealed only because God turned up the heat, causing what was on the inside to pop out for all to see!

Today, God is still in the business of making popcorn.  He knows that without the heat of trial and testing it is impossible for the best to come out in His children.  He also knows that unless we are tested in this way, our lives will never serve the purpose He has in mind and that purpose is to glorify Him.  So, if you are in the popcorn popper today, know this.  The heat and the pressure you feel around you serve only to perfect that which is inside you.  God sees through the shell of the kernel to the white, fluffy, refreshment that only comes through the heat of testing. The real question we must answer is whether we will be a kernel that pops or one that remains unchanged.  I believe I hear the sound of corn popping.  Do you?